Laden with Guilt and Full of Fears, take 2

How terrible it would be if we discussed our guilt and didn't speak of the atonement God has made for us. How loathsome it would be if the holiness of God was our final confrontation, with a fiery hell certain for us, with no chance for mercy. What a depressing plight we would be in if the only line of his hymn that Watts could have penned was that first line, that he was laden with guilt and full of fears. It would be improper (to say nothing of depressing) for me to write on this hymn and not talk about "the volumes of my Father's grace".

Being grieved over sin is an integral part of every Christian's life. The Spirit convicts us of wrongdoing, and we ought to want to repent, turn from our wicked ways. But as we do this, we should remember that this oppertunity is there for us because of God's grace and mercy. Just as we don't deserve God's grace the thousandth time we repent (when we are often quite aware of the fact), we also don't deserve it the first time, even as we often have the sense that we do. "See how great a love the Father has bestowed upon us" (1 John 3:1, NASB).

I think about this love that 1 John speaks of, and all I can do is sit and let my eyes tear up. I know I don't even really understand how great God's love and grace are (Watts didn't either, for that matter), but that a holy God would "suffer death to set His prisoner free" is truly an amazing display of it. And how we are so inclined to cheapen even God's love and grace by vainly thinking that we deserve them. And when I think of that, I can only shake my head.

"The volumes of my Father's grace dost all my griefs assuage. Here I behold my Savior's grace in every page." (Watts)

Luke